Just back from Disney Dream. Did I miss something?

[KGSB11]

Just got back from a 3-day cruise on Disney Dream with my family of 4. I wasn't very impressed and by day 2, I was already starting to note all the differences between DCL and RCCL; and in my opinion RCCL came out ahead in most areas including the Kids Club/Adventure Ocean.

 

Truth be told, I am not a huge fan of the Walt Disney Company in general, but I honestly had an open mind after hearing people rave about service and the "Disney Experience". Not saying I had a bad time because -- Cruising. But I left not caring if I sailed with them ever again and really looking forward to my Feb 2018 Liberty cruise. Even my wife, who LOVES Disney felt the same.

 

Loooking for others' opinions on DCL vs RCCL and wondering if I missed something or just had a random chance "off-day" for that cruise?

[perditax]

Truth be told, I am not a huge fan of the Walt Disney Company in general,

 

This is kind of all there is to it. You're either "in the bubble" or you're not. You don't need anyone else to confirm your opinion in any case.

 

(I am not in the bubble, but my one *concierge level* cruise with DCL blew away the other four lines I've been on in terms of service. Pretty sure the concierges would have jumped overboard and swum back to shore to fetch me something if I asked nicely. That said, it was concierge and it's too rich for my blood. Plus ... too many screaming kids in the dining rooms and no dinner buffet.)

[bigtony777]

I will first say that Disney has currently priced our family out. We have sailed twice with them and loved it, but I can currently take 2 cruises on Royal for the price of one Disney cruise.

 

The service was so much better on Disney with our girls. Once we arrived for dinner, I did not have to worry about a single thing. They talked with the kids to get something they would like each night. When the food came out, they would cut up anything for each of them and truly wait on them much more than my wife and I. This was great as we could relax and really enjoy dinner instead of helping our daughters.

 

Will we cruise with them again? If the price were right we would definitely go again.

[KGSB11]

This is kind of all there is to it. You're either "in the bubble" or you're not. You don't need anyone else to confirm your opinion in any case.

 

(I am not in the bubble, but my one *concierge level* cruise with DCL blew away the other four lines I've been on in terms of service. Pretty sure the concierges would have jumped overboard and swum back to shore to fetch me something if I asked nicely. That said, it was concierge and it's too rich for my blood. Plus ... too many screaming kids in the dining rooms and no dinner buffet.)

 

I just found it odd that my wife who is "In the bubble" as you say, also felt the same.

[perditax]

I just found it odd that my wife who is "In the bubble" as you say, also felt the same.

 

You know the drill--they sail full. Prices only go up. Someone's buying.

 

If you're looking for someone to agree with you that those people are all crazy, I'm sure you'll get some takers, especially in the RCI forum (where DCL cruisers generally end up when they get priced out--even the main Disney online community/podcast has its official cruises on RC).

 

(That said, I just saw in another thread that Disney's ships are on par with luxury lines in terms of passenger to space ratio.)

[KGSB11]

The service was so much better on Disney with our girls. Once we arrived for dinner, I did not have to worry about a single thing. They talked with the kids to get something they would like each night. When the food came out, they would cut up anything for each of them and truly wait on them much more than my wife and I. This was great as we could relax and really enjoy dinner instead of helping our daughters.

 

This was in-line with my expectations, however was far from received. By the third and final night (having done these exact things days 1 and 2) I had to wait for the wine list, order and wait for milk for my daughters, and when asked for bread right away to keep DD (23mos) occupied, it would come in "normal" time after drinks and orders were placed. These are things I have become accustomed to on Royal cruises and expected the same if not better service.

 

I also witnessed the next table over request a certain pastry at breakfast for their kid and were denied because they can only serve off of their tray and when they run out, they cannot grab from other trays.

 

I feel compelled to say that it certainly did not ruin the vacation...sun was warm, beach was Sandy, water was salty -- better than any day at home...I was just surprised.

[KGSB11]

You know the drill--they sail full. Prices only go up. Someone's buying.

 

If you're looking for someone to agree with you that those people are all crazy, I'm sure you'll get some takers, especially in the RCI forum (where DCL cruisers generally end up when they get priced out--even the main Disney online community/podcast has its official cruises on RC).

 

(That said, I just saw in another thread that Disney's ships are on par with luxury lines in terms of passenger to space ratio.)

 

Not looking for vindication; just whether my experience was typical or atypical.

[ronandcarla]

We are definitely Disney Vacationist and have visited there since 1971 when they opened, but for us RCCL is the only line we have used for every cruise was better than the last one. As an insider I can tell you that everything they do is first class so obviously they charge accordingly and they are not hurting for cruise guests.

[shellster1]

I'll just be totally honest here: I wouldn't go on another Disney cruise if you paid me:

1) They treated my disabled mother terribly. This alone makes me hate them.

2) We didn't book a year in advance, therefore we had late dining. Tell me, what 3 year old eats dinner at 8:30pm? Why is that even an option on a DISNEY cruise? I get it, they cannot accommodate everyone at the same time. Fine. BUT....for all us losers that booked late, the buffet turned into this cheesy sit-down restaurant with very few options. It was horrible. So basically, we were forced to skip dinner.

3) I love kids, even those that are not mine...but truth be told, there's way too many on Disney. Obviously. It's bad enough I have to go to D-land/D-world every year for my son's benefit. However, I'm on vacation, too. I want some kind of break from all the little rugrats.

4) It's way cheesy how they announce the family names. Do they still do that? Gimme a break.

5) The character dance parties are great, but again...God help your pre-schooler from the other kids knocking them over. It was every man/kid himself at those "parties".

6) Service was horrible.

7) They treated my mom horribly. Yes, I mentioned this. This is personal...but she had a terminal illness, had to bring on board with her an O2 concentrator, had trouble with mobility, had a lot of meds, weighed about 90 pounds, etc..The bad treatment began the first day: I had to INSIST on disability boarding. I should not have had to do that. Believe me, it was obvious she needed it. It just got worse from there. Anyway, it has stuck with me these past few years. I'll never go back on their ships. I loved her so much. It kills me they treated her that way.

8) Plus they are crazy expensive. Total rip-off.

Ok, I'm done with my rant. Feels good to get that out!

Happy for everyone that loves them. Seriously. To each his own!:)

[perditax]

Shellster, sorry that happened to you. I'm not a DCL apologist (most likely a one and done for me), but I'm pretty shocked about the treatment you describe. They have such a reputation for being the go-to vacation company for disability, special needs, dietary restrictions, etc.

[shellster1]

Shellster, sorry that happened to you. I'm not a DCL apologist (most likely a one and done for me), but I'm pretty shocked about the treatment you describe. They have such a reputation for being the go-to vacation company for disability, special needs, dietary restrictions, etc.

 

Thank you. I probably should not have posted my experience. I don't like being negative. I know as with everything, sometimes we all encounter poor customer service that is considered rare for a company with a great reputation. It was unfortunate. My mom never batted an eye about it, though. I have a letter she wrote me telling me of all the cruises we took together, the Disney was here favorite, because "she was with the people she loved the most." It was the first cruise we took with my son, her only grandson. I try to only remember the good parts of the trip...but sometimes I guess other memories come to mind. Still, I just can't bring myself to try them out again. :(

[kwazi07]

Interesting to read all of these things about Disney. I have the Disney "chip implant" as my family says, so I still want to go on a Disney cruise. But these things make me question it--I love Royal, and I don't think Disney will provide a cruise that is 2x better, in line with the price. For now I'll stick to WDW.

 

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[Lisa8]

We have nothing but great things to say about Disney. The service has always been spectacular for us. If I chose a cruise based on service alone its Disney. You're treated like royalty. I felt that all the cast members enjoyed their work and wasnt working for a tip. I never left one Disney cruise where I didnt add more to the prepaid gratuity because the service is too remarkable not to reward. The service made the experience unforgettable. Disney doesnt even have a casino or as many activities as Royal, but the service is world class. The servers never needed to reminded what we drank every night or how we liked our steaks. We sat down and they took care of the rest. We never had issues we had to address at guest services and if we had to use guest services for anything they had enough people on, so that you're not waiting in line for more than 5 minutes. The food is better on Disney where we dont have to pay for specialty dining to get decent food. We never felt the need to pay for food on Disney, if we did it was out of choice not necessity. During one of our sailings they missed one of the ports, sparkling wine or champagne not sure which was sent to each stateroom. This is what they call going above and beyond. It wasnt even their fault, it was weather related.

 

But the price point is double if not more for Disney. We can get two balconies on Royal for the price of being in an inside room with all 4 of us stuffed together on Disney.

 

I'm sorry that they treated your mom terribly, so I can see how it became personal and probably left a sour taste through the entire cruise. Did you try addressing the issue to someone higher up at guest services?

[QueenofEverything]

We have been on 5 Disney cruises and loved them all. I can't imagine some of the things mentioned in this thread because I have always felt the service was above and beyond and their crew very kind. To the OP - maybe a 3 day cruise was not a fair comparison. A three night cruise is really just 2 days (ok 2 1/2). I would never go on one that short. You just get on and it's time to get off again!

[BamaGuy44]

Disney puts out a fine product, as does RCL. They're more alike than they are different, so I'm not surprised you weren't just blown away compared to Royal. If you're not "into" Disney, the "Disney Experience" won't really mean much.

 

Each one hes their pros and cons but for the difference in price I'd pick Royal every time.

 

Here's the thing, some DCL fans are bit over the top about it, and they convince themselves it's WAY beyond anything anyone else can offer, and get a little carried away with how wonderful it is. So it can warp peoples' expectations IMO.

 

If your wife is "into" Disney and she wasn't feeling it, my guess is they were having an off week, or she had it built up a little too much in her mind.

 

Also I'll say this. The Dream is the least desirable of their ships to work on, so it's definitely not their best crew IMO. Crew members aren't big fans of having 2 turnaround days every week, so the good ones try to work their way onto the other ships from what I've been told.

[xxHadleyxx]

I would say our family is fairly well into that "Disney Bubble"

We honeymooned tehre 21 years ago. We had annual passes to WDW for years when we lived in the US and now we have them to DLP. And we are Platinum on DCL (their highest tier) and them almost exclusively from 1999 to 2009.

 

All that said---we now sail tha vast majority of the time on RCI, have not been on Disney in about four years and that last one was on one of their newer/bigger ships (Fantasy) and we were not very impressed at all and service fell flat in many areas (my now 18 year old, who does love Disney otherwise, has NO desire to sail Disney again after that trip).

 

I do love their two smaller ships and the service we have (or at least had) there---but not for current pricing. They are not nearly THAT much better than RCI (particularly looking at price differences in Europe) and the programmign is so tightly controlled that even trivia questions do not change more than every few years (or this was always the case previously) , not so fun for repeat guests. Our one experience with the big Disney ship was that they relied far too heavily on the ship itself to entertain and impress staffing fell flat---and the ship had lots of pretty bells and whistles but much wasn't all that usuable or itneresting to do more than once. Also, on our sailing, the teen club did not allow teens to use their lovely hot tub deck unless enough showed up all at once in suits and they frequently cancelled programs for "lack of interest" a good half hour before the program was due to start---then turned kids away when they arrived a few minutes ahead.

 

Which all means, no your wife is not the only person "in the Disney Bubble" to be disallusioned with a bigger DCL ship compared to RCI. That said--if we didn't have to spring for airfare to the US I would be trying to pick up an off season, lower priced DCL trip on Magic or Wonder----we never had a bad cruise on those and loved them dearly, and the upgrades look amazing

[Bootman4U]

We've sailed with Disney several times and enjoyed it for what it was and we have no children. In terms of these supposed "price differences" I am very sorry but I never paid as much to sail on ANY Disney ship as I have on RCCL. But I've usually sailed in suite class on RCCL and I EXPECTED to pay more.

 

Being so-called "priced out" has little to do with the actual service on any ship IMO. You want to be "priced out?" You can BE that on RCCL quite easily IMO.

[xxHadleyxx]

We've sailed with Disney several times and enjoyed it for what it was and we have no children. In terms of these supposed "price differences" I am very sorry but I never paid as much to sail on ANY Disney ship as I have on RCCL. But I've usually sailed in suite class on RCCL and I EXPECTED to pay more.

 

Being so-called "priced out" has little to do with the actual service on any ship IMO. You want to be "priced out?" You can BE that on RCCL quite easily IMO.

 

When i talk about being priced out, I compare similar stateroom types to similar ship sizes sailing same weeks to similar ports. In Europe the per night price is usually more than double (and in some cases over 4 times as much). This was not always the case over here, but as they learned to market Europe better and created more interesting iteneraries the prices really jumped.

 

Yes, there are always higher priced rooms and pricier ships---but for me I a m"priced out" as in the price has far exceede the experience at this point, for me and comparing as close as I can apples to apples I find substantially better pricign on RCI, Celebrity, MSC, Princess . . .

[Lionesss]

Our first family cruise was on the Disney Magic and it was the experience of a lifetime.

 

We were in a category 7 cabin and it fit the three of our needs.

 

Then we found out about RCI.

We were able to get a GS on Freedom, for 3 of us, for the same price as a category 7 on Magic.

So, we tried and liked RCI.

 

Sure Disney is top shelf in our eyes (too each his own).

But for the cost, we love the product that RCI provides at this time.

 

Currently addicted to the crown loft suites on Allure.

Yea $$$

Guess we could go back to Disney, but do not want too.

 

Enjoy, in what ever makes you happy

 

Safe travels.

[ricka47]

We love Disney and realize they are expensive. But, the parks and DCL are different (for us) in terms of quality. You pay more for both because only they have Mickey and other things that are exclusively Disney. However, the last time we were on one of the two older ships, it was rusty and dirty in many places. We then sailed one of the new ships and it was in much better shape. However, their service is no better than RCI and, in general, we think (and so does my granddaughter) that the food is better on RCI than DCL.

 

We live in Florida and will sail DCL again - but only with the resident discount. There simply is no equivalent increase in quality to go with the increase in price.

[BillOh]

Just got back from a 3-day cruise on Disney Dream with my family of 4. I wasn't very impressed and by day 2, I was already starting to note all the differences between DCL and RCCL; and in my opinion RCCL came out ahead in most areas including the Kids Club/Adventure Ocean.

 

 

I have never been on DCL, but I have to wonder is making a comparison of a 3 day cruise like comparing Majesty to Harmony?

[Cel_cruise]

The service was so much better on Disney with our girls. Once we arrived for dinner, I did not have to worry about a single thing. They talked with the kids to get something they would like each night. When the food came out, they would cut up anything for each of them and truly wait on them much more than my wife and I. This was great as we could relax and really enjoy dinner instead of helping our daughters.

 

.

 

 

We are big Disney fans (APs, DVC, my 6 year old has been to a Disney park 12 times etc), but we have not gone on a Disney cruise and I don't think we will. The ships just don't excite me in the same ways the parks do. I think it's because they don't have as much change/variety and they are so expensive that I just feel that the bar has to be really high with no room for error for me to get the value out of it.

 

On our last RCI cruise - the paragraph above describes everything about our dining experience. Andre our assistance waiter was amazing - and he handled everything for my kids. As soon as he saw us enter the dining room he went to get their fruit cups and salads so they were on the table instantly - and he always cut up their chicken and teased that they had to eat it if they wanted him to bring their desert. I had the best vacation because of Andre and the AO staff!!

 

 

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[andrew2346]

This is a great thread. I've done both lines several times with and without kids. If I had the $$$ I would sail Disney hands down...even without the kids. The adults only areas are VERY nice and actually kid free..lol. I am not a Disney person. I do not want to see characters AND I didn't have to! My kids are now 16, 14, 11, and 8. They LOVED the Anthem last spring break. They CRIED on the way home..lol. So we won't be taking the kids on any more Disney cruises because they have outgrown it.

 

IMO RCCL has a great product but can be service can be more unpredictable. I have always been satisfied with my RCCL cruises.

 

Disney however IMO is a step above in every area. Just an analogy...lol. Disney is like a country club and RCCL is like an new community center : ) I can't afford the country club so we are more than happy at the community center.

 

When our kids were younger we liked this about Disney:

Kids club--I mean really..lol SOOOO Good

Dining was a pleasurable experience for the adults (even with the kids..shocking). The servers knew our kids. They had their drinks waiting for them on the table when we arrived. They had activities on the table waiting for them. They served the ketchup in the shape of a Mickey head for crying out loud. Then they had the kids food brought out first and CUT it up for them..lol. When our meals were served our children were escorted the the kids club by a cast member if they wished to go.

Pirate night! Fireworks! Real parties at night that the kids loved.

Mickey head ice cream via room service

The staterooms are bigger

No towel check in or out at the pool

Castaway Cay--IMO blows RCCL out of the water

 

Alas...I have teenagers now and they just love RCCL...the new ships. I wouldn't taken them on the Grandeur although I really really like that ship.

 

Hope this was helpful.

[cruzinlisa]

Just got back from a 3-day cruise on Disney Dream with my family of 4. I wasn't very impressed and by day 2, I was already starting to note all the differences between DCL and RCCL; and in my opinion RCCL came out ahead in most areas including the Kids Club/Adventure Ocean.

 

Truth be told, I am not a huge fan of the Walt Disney Company in general, but I honestly had an open mind after hearing people rave about service and the "Disney Experience". Not saying I had a bad time because -- Cruising. But I left not caring if I sailed with them ever again and really looking forward to my Feb 2018 Liberty cruise. Even my wife, who LOVES Disney felt the same.

 

Loooking for others' opinions on DCL vs RCCL and wondering if I missed something or just had a random chance "off-day" for that cruise?

 

Yes, I would say you did miss something. If you are not all in on Disney that is what you missed. The big deal is the theming and the character events. And the way that the have separated the family and adult experience, with the adults only areas of the ship where you can go and have a kid free experience.

I have heard that the service level on Disney is a cut above the rest, but that was not my experience and sounds like it was not yours either. The food in the dining rooms was okay. Not as good as Carnival or Celebrity. The buffet was the best though with lots of shrimp, crab legs, carved meats, etc (and this was at LUNCH). The dining service was fairly standard. Definitely not better than other lines. It was not horrible- just equal or worse.

 

Kids club was decent. The areas are amazing, the hand washing stations very cool and check in/out process was good, but my DD (who was 4 and watches Disney Jr. every single second we will let her) was not that into it. I expected more there.

 

That said, the shows and character meet opportunities were the main draw. We were able to meet all of the characters except Daisy (which caused a mini meltdown). We got photos and autographs. DH got to see the Avengers movie which had just been released in theaters in 3d for no extra cost. Those things, combined with the adult only areas and Palo, were the best part of the cruise.

 

If my daughter was not SO Disney, I don't know if it would have been worth it to me. I myself am very into Disney, but meeting someone in a Goofy costume and getting his autograph are not that big of a deal. Seeing my daughter meet him and hug him and getting the photo was a different story.

[marciemi]

Totally agree with you and DH & I are HUGE Disney fans. Like live outside Orlando and spend a couple days a week in the parks fans. We did DCL back in 2000 when it was fairly new and our kids were young and were just puzzled. As others have said, it was "fine" but definitely not worth the 1.5-2 times the cost of other lines. WAY too many kids (even though we had 3 with us in the 5-8 range), still lines for everything (we had hoped it would be like Disney World but without the lines - nope, every time Mickey appeared, within seconds there were 200 kids waiting to see him!).

 

We moved down here to FL about 3 years ago and I'm on pretty much every Disney website/message board/blog, etc. Everyone just raves about DCL. In the meantime, since we've been here we've done 3 NCL and an Oasis cruise and loved all 4 of them. Decided that while we're here we needed to give Disney one more shot since we probably just had an out of the ordinary experience.

 

So the end of January we did another Disney cruise (just DH & me, in our 50's). And again, it was exactly the same thing - it was "okay" at best. WAY too many kids once again (despite the time of year) and although Disney heavily pushes their "adult only" areas, every dining venue that is adult only costs good money. We found the regular dining room just okay, service/food just okay, etc. Absolutely honestly, the highlight of the cruise for us was the Room Service chicken noodle soup (which we ordered 3 times because we liked it so much). That's really reaching when that's the best you can come up with.

 

While on land I feel Disney customer service is second to none, on the cruise it was like dealing with Carnival staff (which we stopped cruising years ago, sorry!). Really wanted to book the mixology class so got to the port early and had to stand in a parking garage (!!) for an hour before they'd even let us in the building. I can't believe they don't have anywhere else you can line up other than in a garage with cars constantly whizzing by? Got an early boarding group and on the ship by 11:30 and rushed to guest services only to be told they wouldn't load it into their system until noon. It actually ended up taking much longer than that. We were supposed to get a Disney Visa discount on a tour we took (which amounted to $4 for each of us) and it took 3 trips to GS and lots of "we'll have someone call you" before we got it.

 

Also, maybe because we can go to the parks so often, it seemed like such a waste of cruise time to see characters on the ship. We felt obligated to see all the shows (since we felt it unlikely we'd cruise DCL again) but weren't "wowed" by any of them (conversely, I love many of the shows at the parks). Our bottom line conclusion was that we love Disney and we love cruising, but it works better for us to keep them separate. If someone tells me they have a Disney cruise planned (and have already gotten past the sticker shock), I can honestly tell them I'm sure they'll have a good time. If someone gave me a Disney cruise for free, heck yeah, I'd go gladly! But for the same (or more) money, I'll stick with other lines. We already have our next RCI cruise planned on the Allure for September (which cost only slightly more for a week than the 3 day on Disney) and will leave DCL for the many folks we met on board who refused to try any other line!